15 Months

You weigh 21 lbs (8th percentile) and are in the 25th percentile in height head circumference.

You are still eating like a hog. As long as we eat it, you want to eat it. You like food with spices, garlic and onions. The only thing you don't like is pickles.

You go to sleep at 7:30pm and get up between 6:15-6:30am. You still take two naps a day and each one is about an hour and a half.

You wear 12 month clothes in just about everything. You still have a few onesies that are 9 month but you are about to outgrow them. We were always told that you had huge feet during our ultrasounds, but you are wearing a smaller shoe size than average. You are wearing mostly 3's but 4's fit as well.

You wear a size 4 diaper during the day and a size 4 overnight diaper at night.

You look like you have a mullet. Your hair really needs to be cut, but I've been putting it off.

You can walk when you want to. You can walk the whole distance of the room, but we have to be cheering you on. You climb over everything. You love to explore and get in to stuff.

You say "Dada, Cat, Hat and Apple". I am a bit upset that you haven't said mama. You said it a few times back in November, but I haven't heard it since then.

We took you to an Infectious disease specialist to talk to him about your fevers. He said that you look like a very healthy boy. We were glad to hear that. He will be monitoring you the next few months to see if you are just getting continuous infections or if you have Periodic Fever Syndrome.

Your favorite thing to do is go outside and play. Anytime you see your hat, you say "hat" and expect to go outside. We take you out as much as we can. You love to crawl in the grass, look around and slide.

Another one of your favorite things right now is reading. I seriously have to read you at least 15 books a day. I love to read, but it can be too much sometimes.

One of the best desserts ever!

Oh my goodness, I tried a new dessert when we had company and it was amazing. I seriously might say that it is my favorite dessert of all time. Everyone gobbled it up, so I know it was well-liked. Just thought I would share.

S'mores Bars

Makes: 24 bars

Prep: 25 min

Crust:

14 whole graham cracker boards (crushed about 2 1/4 cups)

3 Tablespoons sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

6 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Brownie:

6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped (I used Ghirardelli)

3/4 cup unsalted butter

3 eggs

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 cup all purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Topping:

1 jar (7.5 ounces) marshmallow cream

2 tablespoons milk

1 cup mini chocolate kisses

3 Graham cracker boards , broken up

1. Heat over to 350.

2. Crust: In a small bowl, combine the graham crackers crumbs, sugar, salt and melted butter until evenly moistened. Transfer the crumb mixture to a 13x9 baking pan; press crumb mixture evenly over the bottom and up sides of pan. Refrigerate until chilled and set.

3. Brownie: Combine the bittersweet chocolate and butter in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave chocolate mixture 1 minute. Stir the chocolate mixture until smooth. If necessary, microwave another 15 seconds to melt.

4. IN a large bowl, beat together the eggs and sugar on medium-high speed until well blended. Reduce the speed to medium and gradually add the melted chocolate mixture; beat until smooth.

5. Stir the flour and salt into the egg mixture; stir in vanilla until smooth. Scrape the brownie mixture into the crust-lined baking pan; smooth the top level.

6. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes (I did 27 min) or until toothpick inserted in center tests clean.

7. Topping: Meanwhile, whisk together the marshmallow cream and the milk until well blended and smooth.

8. Pour the marshmallow topping over the brownie layer. Tilt the pan to spread. Sprinkle with mini chocolate kisses and broken up Graham cracker crumbs. Serve.

Visit with Drew & Sianna

Drew and Sianna (along with Randy & Marcy) came and stayed with us on Friday night. Luke and I cooked dinner and we all had a great time. It was nice for them to be able to get to know Greyson a bit, although Greyson wasn't in the best mood. He has more teeth coming in, so to say he has been cranky is an understatement.

It ended up snowing on Saturday, so they skipped out on exploring St. Louis and stayed with us until they had to catch their flight.

We so wished that they lived closer. I could totally see us bonding over good food, wine and shopping (the shopping part is for Sianna and I).

Chiefs Mohawk Hat

I finally finished the hat that I've been working on for a few weeks. It wasn't hard but poking the mohawk pieces through the fleece was a bit of a booger. Luke helped me quite a bit with getting the pieces through. I'm rather proud of myself because the sewing looks pretty good and the hat actually fits. The hat is big, but I think Greyson will be able to wear it for two football seasons. Can you see him in this hat at the stadium? I can't wait. Maybe, Luke needs one as well.

Ignore the picture. Greyson was having a rough day. It was cold outside and he thought that he got to go outside since we put a hat on him. =(

I got the idea and pattern from: http://snazzlecraft.blogspot.com/2009/02/fleece-mohawk-hat-tutorial.html.

Scrapbook Layout - Explore the Great Outdoors

I like to scrapbook, but I like to do other things a little bit more. I have been thinking though, that if I don't start scrapbooking pictures of Greyson that I'll never get it started. I randomly picked this picture last night and jumped right in. I decided to combine scrapbooking with my newest crafting adventure - sewing. I sewed around the edges of the green paper and then again on the brown border.

Journaling says: 08.03.10

I decided to take you outside for a photoshoot. I thought you would look adorable in your overalls sitting on the gravel. Once I sat you there, you never looked up! You kept looking at it and touching it. I think this started your love for the outdoors.

Peas-and-Carrots Soup with Dumplings

We tried a new soup from the new Rachel Ray magazine. It was totallly different from the soups that we normally make, but that is what made it so good. That and the fact that all the ingredients are things we always have in our fridge. It will end up being one of those "go-to" meals that you can have when you need to clean the fridge out.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 T extra virgin olive oil

3 T butter

3 Carrots - peeled, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced (we chopped instead so that Gabes could eat it)

1 rib celery, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

Salt & Pepper

1 Fresh Bay leaf (we had frozen so I used that)

2 rounded tablespoons flour

1 32 ounce container chicken or vegetable stock

1 rounded tablespoon dijion mustard

1 C frozen peas

2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon, dill or parsley (we used parsley)

1 8-ounce box biscuit mix (we used Jiffy Buttermilk Biscuit mix)

1. Heat a couple of tablespoons of the olive oil over medium high heat in a dutch oven. Add the butter to melt, then add the carrots, celery and onion; season with salt, pepper and the bay leaf. Cover the pot and cook, stirring occasionally until the carrots soften, 7-8 minutes.

2. Sprinkle the flour on the vegetables and stir for a minute, then whisk in the chicken (or vegetable) stock until thickened. Stir in the mustard and peas. For a thinner soup, add 1 c water with the stock.

3. Add the chopped fresh herbs to the biscuit batter and combine. When the soup is bubbling, form the batter into small dumplings using 2 spoons, then drop onto the surface of the soup. Cover the pot and cook the dumplings, gently stirring, until firm, 8-10 minutes. Transfer to bowls and discard bay leaf. Serve.

** This doesn't call for any meat, but you could add chicken to it easily. Even without adding chicken, the soup tastes identical to a chicken pot pie. Yummy!

Just about Greyson

We had our PAT Teacher come this morning. Greyson has a blast when she comes, because she brings new toys. She always plays with Greyson, but also shows him something new in regards to learning. Today, she brought a homemade piggy bank and they worked on turning the coins (from right to left and vice versa) and putting them in. She tells me that Greyson is advanced in fine motor skills. Fine motor consists of things like: manipulating straws to drop in a hole, using two fingers to pick up something, etc. She also said that he is advanced with playing by himself. I told her that he can occupy himself for 30-45 min at a time. She said 15 mins at a time is great at this age. He is also advanced at pretend play. He is able to push a car around and she said that is a skill for 18 months+. The two major things that he is not doing quite as well is walking and talking. We are so close on walking, but we have had a few setbacks. He has fallen three times in the last two weeks. All three times, he has hit the same tooth and has had a mouth full of blood. He is doing great walking with one of our hands and pushing his little cart around. He can now back-up if he runs it into something. Its so cute. As far as talking goes, we are working with him. I've seen a huge increase in his receptive language. I just need to work with him on being more verbal. Consistently, he is saying: dada, hat and cat.

I'll be interested to know his weight/height. We go to the doctor next week, so I should know that kind of stuff then.

Slow Cooker BBQ Ribs

Oh my goodness, these ribs were awesome! They were easy to make and the meat was extremely tender.

Slow Cooker BBQ Ribs - 4 Servings

2 lbs boneless country style pork ribs

1 can (6oz) pineapple juice

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

1 garlic clove, minced (I used 3)

2/3 C BBQ sauce

1/3 C Plum Jam (I used Apricot b/c I couldn't find plum)

1. In a large skillet coated with cooking spray, brown ribs on all sides. Transfer to a slow cooker, top with pineapple juice, onion and garlic. Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours (I did 5) or until meat is tender.

2. Remove ribs; drain and discard cooking juices and onion. Return ribs to the slow cooker. Combine BBQ sauce and jam; pour over ribs. Cover and cook on high for 30 minutes.

3. Serve.

Craft Update

I'm totally in to this whole crafting thing. I have like five different projects going on right now. I thought I would post the two that I wrapped up this week.

The first one is a flower petal hat for the business. I've had my eye on these for quite some time, but didn't want to pay $36-50 for one. I decided that I would give it a try at making one myself.

I went to Hobby Lobby and bought flowers and the crochet hat. Total cost was $8.00.

I picked the petals off of the stem and started glueing (sp?) them in place. It was pretty easy. I love the end look.

The finished product:

Here is the finished chip bag and tomato for Greyson to play with. I'm kind of annoyed with myself, because I forgot to put crinkly stuff inside the chips.

Pictures Anyone?

Greyson has been such a goober lately. We have so many funny snapshots of him. I keep my point and shoot out at all times. I don't want to miss anything!

I thought I would share what part of this week looked like (in pictures).

Hugging Kitty

Eating an Oreo for the 1st time (He thought it was awesome).

Reading a fire engine book w/ Daddy while climbing in/out of the fire engine.

Climbing in/out of the fire engine (which he does 50+ times a day).

His crazy smile that he gives me when I ask him for a smile.

1st time riding in the big boy cart (this was actually last week).

Out to lunch.

Playing....playing...playing

So in love.....with my new Macro Lens!!

I'm skipping with joy right now. I can't believe I was able to get a new lens for my camera. The 60mm 2.8 macro has been on my wish list for a few months and I finally got it. Last November, I decided that my next big photography purchase was going to be a macro lens. It's a must have for newborn photography. It is able to capture the fuzzy skin, tiny fingernails, belly button, etc. From November 2010 - March 2011, I have saved everything I made from my shoots. I also saved everything I have made off of Craigslist. On Friday, two people came by and bought tons of Greyson's stuff. I made $140 that day alone. That money topped me off. I'm still doing the happy dance. Happy...Happy...Happy... and it is just in time for Stacey's baby. Happy....Happy...Happy...

I practiced yesterday on Greyson's little farm set. =)

Trials of a Sewing Virgin

Anyone want to know what I've been up to lately? Probably not, but I'll tell you anyway. I have been on a crafting kick. I've been working on sewing play food for Greyson. It has been an interesting experience.

Let me tell you a bit about it. So, the first thing is that I could not figure out how to thread the bobbin. I consulted the book and called Grandma, but still couldn't get it done. Charlotte, one of the play date moms, came over and helped me out. She got me threaded and my bobbin filled. I thought I was fine from there. Well, I got one piece of the food sewn and then I changed the thread. From here, it went downhill again. I got the bobbin threaded this time (yeah!), but could not get the needle to pull the thread up. I consulted the book again and called Grandma again, but nope...nothing. I had a lady coming over from Craigslist to look at Greyson's clothes. Well, we started chatting while she was looking at the clothes. She saw my sewing machine and asked what I was making. I then proceeded to tell her about my threading issue. She looked at it and fiddled for a few minutes and fixed it. I was relieved! I didn't realize that I had to have the top threaded so that the top thread pulls the bottom thread up. Geez, I felt dumb. At this point, I am now on cloud nine because I know I am good to go. I get the lettuce made. I changed out the thread and filled the bobbin. I start to sew and realize my thread is pulling weird. I spend 45 minutes trying to figure out what is going on. When Luke gets home, I ask him to look at it. Neither one of us can figure it out. Nothing seems to help (this is now Friday). Saturday comes and brings my photo shoot people. The photo shoot is actually for the sister of a girl that I used to work with (who happens to own a sewing shop). Can you guess what happens? Yep, I asked my friend (who came with her sister to the photo shoot) to help me figure out what was going on. I had the top thread twisted around the correct knob, but on the wrong side of it. Seriously? Lol. Since Saturday, I have not had any problems. I even managed to finish a sandwich for Greyson.

I made two pieces of bread (stuffed with filling), turkey, American cheese, Swiss Cheese, tomato, and lettuce (that crinkles). I have a few more things cut out and ready to be sewn. I finally feel like I'm on a roll.

Throughout this whole process, I've called my Grandma for help and she has thought that the sewing machine was just acting up. I kept telling her that I know it is just the user, but she didn't believe me.

You believe me now, don't you Grandma? =)

Some people would be appalled by the quality of sewing, but I'm rather proud of them.

Sitr-Fried Pasta Primavera

We made this recipe night before last. It was really good. I thought I would share.

Stir-Fried Pasta Primavera (Rachel Ray Magazine)

Serves 4

Prep 20 min

Cook 15 min

Ingredients:

3 cups broccoli florets

12 ounces fettuccine pasta

2 T vegetable oil

1 red onion, halved lengthwise and sliced 1/4 inch thick

4 carrots, sliced 1/4 inch thick

1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved

salt and pepper

3/4 C heavy cream

3.4 C grated Parmesan

1/4 C chopped fresh basil

1. In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the broccoli until bright green, about 30 seconds. Transfer to a colander, reserving the water in the pot. Add the pasta to the pot and cook until al dente, drain, reserving 1/4 cup of the pasta cooking water.

2. Meanwhile, heat a flat wok over high heat until a bead of water vaporizes upon contact. Swirl in 1 tablespoon oil. Add the onion and stir-fry until it is fragrant, about 1 minute.

3. Swirl in the the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil. Add the broccoli and carrots and stir-fry until the carrots begin to wilt, about 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, season with salt and pepper and stir-fry for 1 minute. Swirl in the cream, bring to a boil and remove from heat. Stir in the Parmesan and basil.

4. Add the pasta and the reserved cooking water to the work and toss to coat; season with salt and pepper. Serve.

**I would add a few cloves of garlic in with the chopped onions. The recipe didn't call for garlic, but I think it would only make it better.

Smile for the Camera!

I thought Greyson looked pretty cute the other day, so I grabbed the point and shoot to take a few pictures. He totally cracked us up. We got a few pictures and then all of a sudden he started closing his eyes. We made a big deal of it and he just thought it was hilarious. Check out the very last photo - he knew exactly what he was doing. Ha.